Nightmares of Chaos
by Sounasha
Summary: A retelling from Lina's POV of the last few episodes of Slayers NEXT.  Spoilers, some Lina x Zel.  Will be kind of hard to understand if you haven't seen NEXT.


_You love him, don't you?_

A single voice out of memory slashing red across her face, eyes widening in surprised shock.  She hadn't realized… not then…

            _How could I have been so blind?_

Chaos all around, battle cries and yells of pain and grief and death… and she can't do a thing, not a thing against the monster that laughs at her helplessness from within a child's body.

            _Are you ready to use the Giga Slave yet, Lina Inverse?_

The pop of air- a soul- escaping a crushed orb echoing through the abruptly still air.  Sylphiel falling to the ground under the sadistic green-eyed stare of Fibrizzo.

            _Sylphiel…_

…remembering healing brought for life near gone…

            …remembering a soft voice calling "flare arrow" as the spell broke harmlessly in mid-air…

            …remembering…

            _Are you ready to use the Giga Slave yet, Lina?_

Sadistic gaze fixed eagerly on wide red eyes, a shocked face showing a heart that hadn't yet realized the pain of a friend's death.

            _The Giga Slave, Lina Inverse?_

Images flash- darkness, spiraling out of control… complete chaos, utter nothingness, devouring Amelia and Zelgadis and Gourry and her and then the world and _all _worlds…

            _No?_

_            Then _she'll _be next!_

A piping voice crying the usual call for justice, summoning shamanistic magic, attacking- and then falling limp as a golden orb shatters beneath careless fingers. Two cries ringing as one, a graveled chimaera's shout and a sorceress' anguished scream.

            _Amelia!!_

A wordless yell of raw fury ripping from Zelgadis' throat as his sword blazed red-black hatred.  Charging the still-grinning Hellmaster, knowing it's futile but having to do _something…_

Two fingers casually squeeze another golden orb, crushing it to nothingness, slicing soul from body in one chillingly emotionless action.  Eyes widen, shadowed in death, and skin of rock slams against the ground.

            _ZELGADIS!!!_

The scream of loss and grief rips from her throat and her heart.  Feet slap against stone and then she's kneeling beside him. Staring at him and past him with unseeing eyes, her mind blank with shock and disbelief.  Hearing nothing but a rushing of air, unable to think or act, only one word echoing in her mind-

            -_Zel…_

…not seeing Zangalas' attempt to destroy the uncaring monster on his crystal throne and dying… not hearing the voice of Martina that had pledged never again to trust screaming in loss, slashing again and again with the howling sword in futile fury…

            She can't hear, can't feel, can't think.  Standing as if in a dream, shocked into silent unthinking emotionlessness.

            A golden orb between a child's fingers…

            _-No…_

Fingers tensing…

            _-She's the last one alive… don't…_

            Crushing…

            _Martina!!_

Running, falling to her knees, her enemy – her friend – both? _(there's no way to tell)_ looking up at her with a strange smile.

            _Lina… this isn't like you…_

Voice hoarse and quiet with approaching death and yet she's not afraid, not worried, still wearing that peaceful smile.

            _Lina… you love him… don't you?_

Oh but can't you see I love all of you, I love Amelia (annoying and silly sometimes but she's become my little sister) and I love you (irritating and exasperating and incomprehensible but still a friend as much as any) and Sylphiel (quiet and gentle and peace-loving, and still a friend even if I haven't known her for long) and yes I love Gourry (protector companion brother, oldest companion and comrade and friend, dull-witted as he is sometimes but I love him for it) and Zel (serious and sometimes silly for it, easy to tease because he's so serious and I think we all want to break through his shell besides, and my relationship with Zelgadis is… is…)

            Last breath sighing from her lungs, dying, dead – _they're dead, they're all dead and I did nothing…_

_            Are you ready to use the Giga Slave _now, _Lina Inverse?_

The Giga Slave… but she can't, she can't, the world can't be traded for the lives of her friends!

            Crystal closing around Sylphiel and Amelia and Zelgadis and Zangalas and Martina, floating up to line with Gourry behind Fibrizzo.  Him telling her they aren't dead, not yet, but when the crystal shatters they _will _be.

            _If you defeat me, they'll live._

_            There's a chance the Giga Slave won't go _completely _out of control, Lina._

_            You still won't use it?_

_            Then they'll die, one by one._

She can't do anything but stare in shock and despair and helplessness.  The Dragon Slave won't work, the Ragna Blade won't work, and the Giga Slave…

            …remembering _darkness chaos death- nothingness_

Turning, gazing at the crystallized bodies, the sadistic smile never leaving the child's face as green eyes travel from crystal to crystal.

            _Who will be first?_

            Perhaps the chimera-man here… 

Ice taking over her blood in one instant, heart stopping, breath stopping, skin turning cold with a terrifying dread.

            _-Zelgadis…_

_            -I can't let him die again… I can't let _any _of them die again…_

An intake of breath in mock surprise and a pretended split-second decision, turning to the crystal beside Zel with a wide, triumphant smile.

            _I know!  We'll start with the swordsman!_

Crystal cracking, ice cracking…

            _GOURRY!!_

_            -**I can't let them die again!!!**_

****Fury combining with fear, all growing and then exploding into cold, chilling determination.  Ice settling over her, freezing emotion, freezing thought.  Cold fury… the sign she's been pushed past her limit, pushed beyond caution into irreversible action.

            And Hellmaster knows it, even before she begins to chant, even before dark power swirls in a wind of darkest shadows about her.

            _She's doing it!_

_            She's finally casting the Giga Slave!_

His voice rising into shrill excitement, insane in its eager anticipation for destruction…

            _I don't care who I get it from!  Just give me something to save Gourry!_

-_Give me something to save them all!_

            **_Darkness beyond blackest pitch, deeper than the deepest night!_**

**_            Lord of Darkness, who shines like gold upon the Sea of Chaos,_**

**_            I call upon thee, swear myself to thee!_**

**_            Let the fools who stand before us be destroyed by the power you and I possess!_**

****

****Foreign power piercing her body a million times, an attack from Fibrizzo at this crucial moment.  Chaos and darkness twisting out of control, consuming her, consuming all into

_nothing_

Lina… 

_Lina..._

_DON'T LEAVE ME!_

**_LINAAAAA!!_**

****

            The Lord of Nightmares watched in silence as sorceress and swordsman embraced.  Amusement touched chaos, and she would have smiled had she form to do so.  This was her domain.  She controlled all within this place.  Wouldn't it be interesting if…

            A touch of will, and the two companions' lips met in the silent, formless, golden space.

            Ah, but Lina Inverse would be furious if she knew.  So might Gourry, perhaps… Both loved another, in _that _way, at least.  She might as well exert a rare bit of kindness and wipe this whole thing from their memories.

            Oh, well.  A bit of amusement was her due.  It got boring in the land of chaos after an eternity of existence.

            Time to send them back…

            Light swirled above a stone arch, and the three companions below watched in amazement and then growing exuberant joy as Lina and Gourry appeared, holding each other in a tight embrace. Slowly their eyes opened…

            "AAACK!  What are you _doing, _Gourry?!??"

            Water splashed as the swordsman tumbled off the stone into the lake with a startled yell.

            In the laughter and confusion and questions that followed, no one noticed the expression of shock and dismay and pain on the normally stony face of the chimera at the first sight of Lina and Gourry in each others' arms…

**Author's Notes**: Yah, it's a bit sappy in parts.  And Lina is somewhat OOC, but she's OOC anyway in the last few Slayers NEXT episodes (like Martina says: "This isn't like you, Lina").  It's all disjointed, I know, but that was purposeful (besides being written when I first woke up and taking about half an hour or an hour to write).  

And I _know _Lina x Gourry is canon and supposedly "correct," but I don't like most canon relationships.  The manga comes first, anyway, and it doesn't have any _hint _of Lina x Gourry (or so one of my friends says – I haven't read the manga).  Hmph. *sulks, still pissed over what happened in NEXT – only saw the end for the first time last night* I'll admit Lina x Gourry is kind of cute, but I don't like the relationship.

But if you watch carefully, Zel _does _have a really shocked/dismayed sort of expression on his face when he sees Lina and Gourry appear at the very end.  And Lina _is _more upset over Zel than she is over the others when Fibrizzo's killing everyone.  Didn't you see how she sort of hovered over him for a while?  Everyone's actions in this fanfic are true to NEXT.  I may have a few of the quotes not word-perfect, but I was doing this by memory.  And of course the thoughts of Lina and the Lord of Darkness weren't in NEXT, but that's what makes this a fanfic – it's speculation.

Okay, you can write your review now, if you still want to.  And I'm going to ignore any flames.  You had advance warning that this contained Lina x Zel, so if you were going to get upset over it, you shouldn't have read it.  Nyah.__


End file.
